Combine harvesters travel over the ground through agricultural fields harvesting crop. Combine harvesters include a self-propelled vehicle with internal threshing, separating, and cleaning mechanisms. Typically a tank or other storage bin is provided on the self-propelled vehicle to receive grain that is separated from material other than grain (MOG) such as stalks, stems, cobs, rocks, and sticks.
A feederhouse is pivotally coupled to and extends forward from the front of the vehicle. The feederhouse is supported on the self-propelled vehicle to support a harvesting head or “header” and pivot up and down. As the feederhouse pivots up and down with respect to the self-propelled vehicle, the header is raised or lowered with respect to the ground. In this manner, by adjusting the pivotal position of the feederhouse with respect to the self-propelled vehicle, the header can be properly positioned with respect to the crop plants in the field that the header is harvesting.
The header is an elongate, laterally-extending structure that engages crop plants adjacent to the ground, severs them from the ground, and conveys the severed plants inwardly toward the center of the header. Once the severed crop plants reach the center of the header, they are conveyed through an aperture in the center of the header into the open front end of the feederhouse.
The feederhouse itself is a generally hollow boxlike structure, having a conveyor disposed inside the boxlike structure that receives the severed crop plants from the header, carries them upward and rearward over the length of the feederhouse, and deposits them in the self-propelled vehicle itself for further processing.
In recent years, headers have grown quite large, and heavy. 30 years ago, a harvesting head might extend 4 m from side to side. Currently, headers are currently being designed that extend 20 m from side to side.
Headers that are 5 times larger than they were 30 years ago are now imposing significant stresses on the feederhouse and supporting members. Not only do they have an increased weight, which requires the feederhouse is to be made of stronger and heavier materials. Additional weight, however, requires additional fuel to drive the combine harvester through the field. Even further, the additional weight pressing downward upon the wheels of the combine harvester compacts the soil, thereby reducing its crop yield.
What is needed, therefore, is an improved feederhouse arrangement that permits the feederhouse to be made of lighter and/or thinner materials.
What is also needed is an improved feederhouse arrangement that permits the harvesting head to follow the ground contours more accurately.
It is an object of this invention to provide such a system.